Dark Is Her Nature

by Judith Berens

  “I’ll try to remember that.” Alison smiled.

  She was in a whole new world, and though she had lived within magical energy her entire life, the school and the people inside were new to her. She imagined it was close to how everyone else saw the world, only they couldn’t read everyone’s personal energy like she could. Her nerves were still there, but they were lessening and a sense of wonderment surged through her.

  4

  When the tour of the campus was done, they walked quietly through the foyer and back out onto the porch. Alison stayed close, but her eyes wandered over every inch of the space she was in. This was the first time she could sense her surroundings like that. Once outside, she stood by the steps, one arm wrapped around the column, staring out over the courtyard.

  “All the older students are getting settled in their rooms. These are the first-year students like yourself.” Mrs. Hudson smiled awkwardly and waved her hands. Alison could see the trails of energy following them. “Talk to people, and get to know them, I have some things to prepare before we head over for dorm assignments. Will you be all right on your own?”

  Alison nodded in Mrs. Hudson’s direction and the woman’s energy took on a deep blue color—something she had seen many times. It was pity or sadness; the shades were similar, but both were irritating. Anyone who knew about her mother instantly changed to that shade, but Alison didn’t want their pity. She had always been a confident girl, strong-willed, astute when it came to others, and well-spoken. However, when she was forced into a situation with new people she immediately started to feel uncomfortable. They all had so much to talk about. They’d lived normal lives, and Alison was the stray.

  Still, she trusted Mr. Brownstone—she was having trouble thinking of him as “James”—and Shay, and though she had separated from them to go to school, they had promised her it was for the best. Now that she was here, Alison realized that there was a larger diversity of magical creatures on Earth than she had thought. Some of them she was seeing for the first time.

  Alison glanced at Mara Berens, who was tending to another new kid and her obviously overbearing parents. She wanted to make friends, but this was all a bit overwhelming so she hung back as the others went in and out, chattering excitedly. Maybe she would end up with good roommates and that would break the ice.

  Alison shook the thought from her mind as Ms. Berens walked swiftly through the crowd, smiling at all the new students. She was an interesting woman, outspoken and strict in a way Alison would imagine a grandmother to be. She liked order, not as a personal preference but to keep the school running smoothly. Anxiety bubbled through the headmistress’ energy, but there was something more. Alison concentrated for a moment. There were threads of dark magic intertwined throughout. Although dark magic wasn’t something to be feared in small doses—it balanced things— hers almost fought the light.

  Alison had heard the rumors about Ms. Berens; that her daughter was a powerful elf, and that she herself had spent over a decade trapped in the World In Between. Alison shivered at the thought. That wasn’t a place she ever wanted to visit, since it was the void between life and death. The living who slipped through the cracks were side by side with the dead who had been unresolved in life. They were able to watch everyone in the world, but they couldn’t interact.

  The hair stood up on the back of Alison’s neck and she straightened. The other kids were gathering around the headmistress.

  “All right, all right.” Ms. Berens’ voice rose above the others. “Welcome to the School of Necessary Magic. We are about to head inside for room assignments. Parents, you are welcome to stay as long as you’d like. Students, you may unpack, get ready for classes tomorrow, and venture around the manor. Dinner in the cafeteria will be served promptly at five. If you have any questions or concerns, I, along with several other instructors will be in the girls’ dorm area, and our male instructors will be with the boys’.”

  The kids clapped intermittently as Alison took a step back, shoving her hands into her pockets and standing quietly to the side as the others moved toward the mansion. She would bring up the rear and would be less likely to be forced into a conversation. The group moved up the winding staircase and down the hall under a sign that read, D Wing, Second Floor NO BOYS ALLOWED.

  “Well, that’s a bummer.” A young Light Elf giggled and gave Alison a mischievous grin, then jogged off to catch up with her parents.

  Alison smirked, finding the girl’s soul interesting. She could tell by the fiery red streaks that ran through the calm blue that the girl was outspoken and wild. Her parent’s souls were exactly the same, only slightly more subdued. They all walked into a large living area that contained couches, a huge flat-screen tv, and vending machines. Surrounding them were sleeping rooms with identical doors and oil lamps on the wall, only there was no oil and the candle still flickered wildly.

  Ms. Berens positioned herself in front of the tv. “I am going to call your names, and when I do, come up and collect your room number.” She looked down at the clipboard, ignoring the excited murmur from the crowd.

  Alison took a deep breath and gripped her bag’s pink leather handle firmly. Everything she had in the world was in that one small bag, but that was okay because she no longer needed all the trinkets and toys she’d had as a child.

  “Alison!” Ms. Berens called, looking at her with a smile and twinkle in her eye. “Well, come on.”

  Alison saw the delight in her soul as she pulled her suitcase to the front.

  “Kathleen, Emma, Izzie, and Aya.” The headmistress winked at Izzie as she quietly walked to the front and stood next to Alison.

  Up came the wild girl from earlier, still emanating excitement. Behind her came another girl, her hands clenched tightly in front of her. Alison could tell she was nervous, but so was everyone else. The headmistress looked around for a moment and a short young woman stepped out from behind a group, her eyes pointed toward the floor as she walked up next to Izzie.

  “All right, girls, your room is 314, to the right. Have fun,” Ms. Berens stated, still watching Alison as they walked toward their room.

  Kathleen got to the door first and dragged her bags in behind her. She stopped and put her hands on her hips, eyeing the five single poster beds with matching nightstands and dressers. “Definitely not the luxuries of home,” she shrugged, “but better than I thought.”

  Aya and Izzie picked the beds closest to the door, neither of them looking at the others. Emma stayed quiet, her nerves shouting as she chose a bed in the center, leaving the two by the window. Kathleen grinned and threw herself onto one of them, then turned over on her back.

  “I wonder how many brave Silver Griffins have laid on these beds?” she mused dreamily to no one in particular.

  Alison laid her bag on her bed and pulled out a white zip-up hoodie. The old house was chilly compared to the hot sun beating down outside. Kathleen sat up and crossed her legs in front of her, leaning back on her hands. She looked from Alison to Emma to Aya and back again.

  “I’m Kathleen.” She was confident and loud, holding her chin high. “Light Elf from New York.”

  Emma looked up. “Emma, and I’m a witch.” She was so quiet the girls could barely hear her.

  “There’s something else in you.” Kathleen squinted, knowing she wasn’t crazy.

  Alison looked at Izzie, who was putting her clothes away in her dresser. As she turned around Alison noticed two empty spaces in Izzie’s soul. She had never seen something like that before. Izzie smiled and turned back, forcing Alison’s gaze to move to Emma’s face.

  “I’m also a Nicht,” Emma replied more confidently than before.

  “No way,” Kathleen gasped. “That’s really cool! Never met one before.”

  “What’s a Nicht?” Alison asked.

  Before Emma could answer Kathleen spoke up. “A magical being with wings, but they only come out when there is enough magic—like when you go to Oriceran.”

  “Neat.”
Alison smiled, giving Emma a kind look.

  “How about you? And I LOVE those white tips. My mother would never let me do that.” Kathleen twirled her red hair around her finger.

  “I’m Alison.” She smiled, thinking about her mother’s long silver locks. She left out her magical abilities, not sure she wanted to have that conversation just yet.

  “And how about you?” Kathleen asked, looking at the petite dark-haired girl by the corner bed.

  The girl looked at Kathleen nervously. Alison could tell she was very shy and overwhelmed, but who wouldn’t be around Kathleen? She was abrasive, to say the least, but Alison liked it. The Light Elf was someone who told it like it was.

  “I’m Aya,” she whispered in a soft voice, looking down at her hands.

  Aya had a good soul, nothing damaged or odd, just a quiet and calm light blue. Alison turned her gaze to the last girl in the room, the one she had seen walking around with the headmistress earlier that morning. She looked like she didn’t want to talk but she knew Kathleen wouldn’t let it go.

  “I’m Izzie. I’m a Light Elf.”

  “Nice to meet you,” Aya whispered, smiling quickly and turning away.

  Kathleen bounced off her bed and stretched her arms in the air and her shirt rose to show her stomach. There was a star on her hip, surrounded by freckles. Aya looked away, trying not to stare.

  “The freckles?” Kathleen laughed. “Curse of the red-headed child, I suppose. What kind of magical being are you, Aya?”

  “A witch,” she mumbled, opening her suitcase.

  Kathleen narrowed her eyes. She sensed there was more to it, but decided to let it be. They would know plenty about each other’s powers soon enough. Alison sat down on the edge of the bed and kicked her suitcase underneath. Emma finished folding her shirts neatly and then did the same with her suitcase.

  “We should explore. Get to know the campus so none of the older kids trick us with bad directions. I’ve heard they can be assholes.” Kathleen had heard stories and was determined not to let them make a fool of her.

  “I’m down.” Emma shrugged.

  “Sure.” Alison shot her a tight-lipped smile.

  “How about you, Aya?” Kathleen asked, walking over and plopping down on Aya’s bed. “You want to explore this place with us?”

  “I’ll come with. Just let me finish unpacking.”

  Aya pulled a cherub doll from the bag, straightening its hair and setting it on top of the dresser. She pulled out another, then another, and kept going until she had eight dolls lined up perfectly next to each other. Kathleen raised an eyebrow.

  “I use them for practice,” Aya finally revealed, knowing she wouldn’t get out of it. “Practice moving objects.”

  “But you’re a witch.” Kathleen laughed loudly, jumping down and putting her hands out in front of her. “It’s easy-peasy.”

  White light flowed up from the ground, wrapped around Kathleen’s body and shot from her hands. The door to the room opened wide with a bang. Kathleen smiled and turned around, dusting her hands.

  “See?”

  “Elf hands in your pockets, Kathleen,” Ms. Berens bellowed from the hallway.

  Kathleen hunched her shoulders and scrunched her nose, making the girls giggle, then smiled valiantly.

  “Come on! So much to see, so little time.”

  5

  The girls left the room, Kathleen in the lead, then Aya, Emma, and Alison, who found it easier to stay in the back in order to avoid questions about her sight. She didn’t think she would have any issue since everything here was lit up like a Christmas tree. They walked down the hall and stopped to look at the half moon landing that ran around the staircase. There were three other hallways off that floor, but nothing was labeled.

  “Anyone bring their map?” Kathleen asked.

  The girls looked at each other for a moment, then Emma stepped forward and pulled out her wand. She waved it in a circle and light twisted, forming a map that floated in front of them. Kathleen nodded, impressed.

  “That’ll do.” Kathleen rubbed her chin as she stared at the map. “Come on.”

  Kathleen walked fast, almost skipping toward the first hallway, then peered around the corner into the dark. As if the house could sense their presence, all the lamps lit along the corridor. The girls walked slowly to the end, where the only door in that hallway was located. Kathleen shrugged and slowly opened the large ornate wooden doors and the girls wandered inside, pausing to gaze in awe at the massive room.

  Lining the walls were floor-to-ceiling shelves packed with books. Ladders rolled back and forth on their own, growing tall and then shrinking again to the bottom shelf. In the center of the room were empty tables and chairs for studying. Alison smiled, knowing she was going to be able to find any answers she needed in here. Ms. Berens had already assured her a spell was always in place and any book Alison opened would convert to Braille, and back again.

  As the girls walked farther in there was a cough behind them.

  They spun and everyone’s eyes dropped to a small grumpy-looking Gnome with his arms crossed over his chest. He wore a suit and bowler hat with a red poppy on the brim that blew raspberries at the girls.

  He narrowed his eyes and stepped forward, and the girls took a step back. “Busybodies,” he grumbled. “Nothing for you to see in here today. And don’t even think about taking a book. I’ll know.”

  Izzie moved closer to Alison, giving her a nervous glance.

  “Who...who are you?” Emma swallowed hard, not wanting to be in trouble on her first day.

  The Gnome stood up a bit taller. “Leo Decker, your head librarian and keeper of knowledge at the school. You’ll be glad to remember that too. Now, go on! Get out of here.”

  Leo was gruff, as Gnomes tended to be. His people were the keepers of artifacts and also protected the books in the Light Elf mansion in Oriceran. Gnomes were known to be excellent secret-keepers but they were also loners, sticking to their own kind and fearlessly protecting their charges. Even Kathleen didn’t have the nerve to talk back to him.

  The girls nodded and scurried out of the library and the door slammed behind them. Kathleen looked at the map in front of her and shook her head, and Emma bit her bottom lip and looked at the others.

  “Did you see that the library had a vault?”

  “I did. Must be books for the professors or something.” Alison didn’t think much of it.

  “I don’t understand why libraries full of old dusty books are even necessary.” Kathleen rolled her eyes and patted her bag. “I mean, seriously…didn’t the iPad make that obsolete?”

  “They don’t have iPads in Oriceran.” Emma looked away quickly, hoping she didn’t piss Kathleen off.

  “They will when they come here.” Kathleen pointed to a spot on the map. “Next thing you know, we are going to find an old set of Encyclopedia Britannicas lying around.”

  The girls giggled at Kathleen and headed back down the staircase, taking a right on the bottom floor to enter the West Wing. There were paintings and sculptures everywhere and magical energy clung to everything. Alison wondered whose magic it was, but didn’t bring it up since the girls couldn’t see magic the way she did. The West Wing was the main teaching area, full of classrooms with whiteboards, desks, and all kinds of interesting artifacts. On the right side of the wing was a massive IT center packed with the newest computers and technology. The school felt it was imperative for the students to learn human technology, given the way the future was headed. Everyone would need to learn the ways of the humans, even though magic was easier.

  The girls crossed the foyer and headed to the East Wing, where there was a well-equipped gym with treadmills, weights, and even some weapons for sparring. Attached to that was an indoor pool with tall cement diving boards. Alison loved the idea of swimming; she’d done it all the time with her mother. Just the thought of her mom brought a pang to her chest, but she shook it off and kept moving. Aya noticed her sad face, but looked awa
y quickly.

  The second floor held the first and second-year dorms and the library they’d already located so they headed up to the third floor, stopping abruptly when a third-year with a clipboard stepped forward and put his hand out. Kathleen looked him up and down, pegging him immediately as a suck-up.

  “Upperclassman dorms, no newbies allowed.” He cleared his throat, still staring down at his clipboard as magical symbols appeared on the page. “Cafeteria is on the bottom floor, North Wing. The entrance is behind the staircase.”

  “Behind the stairs?” Kathleen asked with a chuckle.

  “This house is bigger than you think.” The boy flashed a mischievous grin and Kathleen wrinkled her nose.

  The girls headed back down and peeked behind the staircase, where they found locked double doors. On one was a sheet of paper listing the cafeteria’s hours.

  “There are stables here.” Izzie looked at Emma, whose eyes lit up. “With horses we can ride.”

  “Really?” Aya’s eyes brightened and for a moment she forgot just how uncomfortable she was.

  “You can learn to care for all types of Earth creatures here in your second year. Like a veterinarian, only when you get farther into the program you start learning about magical creatures too.” Izzie couldn’t remember where she’d heard that, but it must have been in the orphanage.

  “That’s awesome.” Aya smiled.

  “I’m not an outdoorsy kind of girl.” Kathleen waved away a fly in front of her. “But I’ve heard the barn is used for more than just horse care, if you know what I mean.” Kathleen waggled her eyebrows and Aya looked at her with confusion, while Emma’s cheeks turned bright red. Alison just chuckled, knowing exactly what she meant—and made a mental note to stay away from the stables. Boys weren’t on her radar, not after everything she had gone through.

  The girls went outside and consulted the map again: the stables were at the bottom of the ridge, reached by a winding trail. They walked through the green grasses of the pastures, where the caretaker was training one of the horses.